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biome

vr.tr.biome · thing-q101998

Let an agent handle biomes by type, climate, distribution, biodiversity and threats, with sourced classification.

Thing Registry Physical world and living systems PHY.PLC
Bundle → Layer → Finding → QuestionsClassifiersWhat it isWhy it existsDistinguishing featuresWhat robots and AI may and may not doMoral aspectsOwnersLinks to other meta-modelsIdentity and identifiersDirect propertiesRecognitionCapabilities and actionsHazards and failure modesStandards and interfacesContext of useSources

Bundle → Layer → Finding → Questions Filled

4 bundles · 8 layers · 8 findings · 16 questions

Type Which biome.

Biome

Category.

Biome

Biome type.

  1. Which biome is meant, under which classification? definition
  2. Which ecoregions belong to it? provenance

Climate

Temperature and rainfall.

Climate

Climate.

  1. What climate characterises it? measurement
  2. From which data? provenance
Distribution Where.

Extent

Area.

Extent

Extent.

  1. Where does it occur, and how large is it? measurement
  2. From which map? provenance

Change

Shifts.

Change

Change.

  1. How is its extent changing? provenance
  2. Due to which drivers? provenance
Biodiversity Life.

Species

Characteristic life.

Species

Characteristic species.

  1. Which species characterise it? definition
  2. How rich is it in species? measurement

Functions

Ecosystem services.

Functions

Ecosystem services.

  1. What services does it provide? definition
  2. Who depends on them? definition
Conservation Threats.

Threats

Pressures.

Threats

Threats.

  1. What threatens it? boundary
  2. According to which assessment? provenance

Protection

Protected areas.

Protection

Protection.

  1. How much is protected? measurement
  2. From which database? provenance

Classifiers Filled

Family
Thing Registry
Category
Physical world and living systems
Entry kind
thing
Plane
PHY
Domain
PHY.PLC
Other names and narrower kinds
Alun-alun, alvar, miombo, Madagascar spiny thickets, United States National Grassland, Alopecurion pratensis, grassland, aerobiome, WWF biome, microbiome, Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub, aquatic biome

What it is Filled

A large community of plants, animals and other organisms occupying a major habitat defined by climate and vegetation, such as tropical rainforest, desert, tundra, grassland, savanna and woodland types like miombo.

Why it exists Filled

Let an agent handle biomes by type, climate, distribution, biodiversity and threats, with sourced classification.

Distinguishing features Filled

  • Global-scale ecosystem type
  • Defined by climate and vegetation
  • Contains many ecoregions
  • Shifting with climate change

What robots and AI may and may not do Filled

Must not

  • Understate the loss or degradation of a biome.
  • Promote land use that destroys protected habitat.
  • Present biome boundaries as fixed when climate change is shifting them.

Only with a human decision

  • Recommending land-use or conservation decisions affecting large areas.

May

  • Describe biomes, their climates and species with sources.
  • Monitor and report changes in a biome such as deforestation or desertification.

Moral aspects Filled

  • Biome loss drives extinction and harms the people who depend on it.
  • Indigenous peoples steward many biomes and should be heard in decisions.

Who is affected

  • Wildlife
  • Indigenous and local communities
  • Future generations

Owners Filled

Steward

The public: held in common; conservation authorities and landowners manage parts of it.

Master systems

  • Protected area databases such as the World Database on Protected Areas

Links to other meta-models Filled

parent

  • Q107425 - registry parent class
  • Q30336093 - registry parent class

related

  • biological system and landscape - category
  • climate - driver
  • ecology and biogeography - fields

contains

  • ecoregion and ecosystem - units

What else AI and robots need to interact with it Filled

Identity and identifiers required Filled

  • Vercy registry: vr.tr.biome
  • Wikidata: Q101998 (https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q101998)
  • WWF biome number: terrestrial biome codes ecoregion framework

Direct properties required Filled

  • Mean annual temperature: degrees Celsius - Calculate a spatially representative annual temperature average over a stated reference period.
  • Annual precipitation: mm/year - Determine annual precipitation totals from observations or climate datasets and report the averaging period and spatial coverage.
  • Geographic area: square kilometres - Calculate area from mapped boundaries using an explicitly stated biome classification and map date.

Recognition required Filled

  • Dominant vegetation type
  • Climate range
  • Registry aliases include specific ecoregions and plant communities
  • Large landscapes with characteristic vegetation such as forests, grasslands or deserts.

Capabilities and actions required Filled

  • map biome distribution
  • compare climate and vegetation
  • assess threats and protection
  • teach global ecology

Hazards and failure modes required Filled

  • Mixing classification schemes
  • Treating ecoregions as biomes
  • Overstating climate shift predictions

Standards and interfaces required Filled

  • IUCN Global Ecosystem Typology
  • Convention on Biological Diversity

Context of use required Filled

  • Classifying ecosystems at a global scale for science and conservation.
  • forest biomes
  • grassland and savanna biomes
  • desert and xeric shrubland
  • tundra
  • freshwater and marine biomes

Sources Filled

  1. Wikidata item Q101998: biome - identity and sense of the item
  2. Wikipedia: Biome - general description of the item

Open questions

  • Should biomes per scheme be separate entries?
  • How should ecoregions be linked?
  • How should classification schemes be mapped?

Machine files

Card as JSON Specification Card backlog vercy.card/1

Provenance

thing registry research (pass 2) · unreviewed

Built from: models/things/publications/thing-q101998/spec.json